*By Jacqueline Corba*
Voters are effectively pressuring lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to publicly support the easing cannabis laws, said the deputy director of the National Organization for Marijuana Laws.
In an interview Tuesday with Cheddar, the deputy director, Paul Armentano said politicians were realizing that marijuana enjoyed greater popularity than they did.
"With the midterm elections approaching, more and more members of Congress from both parties now acknowledge that advocating for marijuana policy reform is not a political liability, rather its a political opportunity," said Armentano.
Last Friday ー on 4/20, of all days ー Sen. Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and the minority leader, introduced a bill to decriminalize weed. A few days earlier, the majority leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, had introduced a bill to remove hemp from the list of controlled substances.
Senators Kamala Harris (D-CA) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) have called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to stop using federal anti-drug laws to block medical marijuana research. And even President Trump changed his tune last week when he promised Sen. Cory Gardner, a Colorado Republican, he would support legal protections in states where marijuana is legal.
A majority of Americans ー 60 percent, according to a Pew Research Center poll ー said they support marijuana legalization.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/inside-the-momentum-driving-politicians-to-back-cannabis).
The number of Americans seeking unemployment aid fell slightly to 787,000, evidence of a job market stumbling in the face of the viral pandemic and the damage it has inflicted on the economy for nearly 10 months.
Congress confirmed Democrat Joe Biden as the presidential election winner early Thursday after a violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Angry supporters of President Donald Trump have stormed the U.S. Capitol in a chaotic protest aimed at thwarting a peaceful transfer of power.
Democrats have won both Georgia Senate seats — and with them, the U.S. Senate majority. That's a stunning defeat for President Donald Trump in his final days in office and it dramatically improves the fate of President-elect Joe Biden’s progressive agenda.
The U.S. Capitol locked down Wednesday with lawmakers inside as violent clashes broke out between supporters of President Donald Trump police.
President-elect Joe Biden has selected Merrick Garland, a federal appeals court judge, as his attorney general, two people familiar with the selection process said Wednesday.
Georgia voters are set to decide the balance of power in Congress in a pair of high-stakes Senate runoff elections.
With Georgia's Senate runoff election underway, a pair of local environmental activists are spreading their message about the need to fight climate change.
SocialFlow tracked clicks per million residents on runoff-related stories in the two weeks leading up to the election, which will ultimately decide which political party will control the Senate.
California Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, author of the state's Fair Food Delivery Act of 2020 bill joined Cheddar to discuss the ramifications of the legislation for both smaller restaurants and third-party delivery platforms.
